Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 110-35-1-.05 - Certification of the Rural Fund

(1) Upon receipt of an application for certification of a rural fund, the Department shall review the application for completeness and compliance with required elements.

(2) Failure to provide any of the following elements within the application will result in the application being deemed incomplete:

(a) The amount of capital investment authority requested;

(b) A copy of the applicant or affiliate's license as a rural business investment company under 7 U.S.C. Section 2009cc or as a small business investment company under 15 U.S.C. Section 681 and a certificate executed by an executive officer of the applicant attesting that such license remains in effect and has not been revoked;

(c) A comprehensive list of any and all affiliates of the applicant pertinent to a rural fund's satisfaction of subsection (b) and (d);

(d) Evidence, as required by the application, that the applicant or its affiliates have invested at least $100 million in nonpublic companies located in rural areas within the United States;

(e) An estimate of the number of jobs that will be created in the state as a result of the applicant's qualified investments;

(f) An estimate of the number of jobs that will be retained in the state as a result of the applicant's qualified investments;

(g) A business plan that includes a revenue impact assessment prepared by a nationally recognized, third-party, independent economic forecasting firm using a dynamic input-output forecasting model that analyzes the applicant's business plan over the ten years following the date the application is submitted to the Department. This business plan must demonstrate a positive economic impact on the state of Georgia over this period;

(h) Acknowledgement that only qualified investments made within the 118 eligible rural counties shall be eligible qualified investments under the program;

(i) A nonrefundable application fee of $5,000 payable to the Department; and

(j) Any other information required by the Department in the application.

(3) Within 30 days after receipt of a completed application, the Department shall grant or deny the application in full or in part.

(4) The Department will certify capital investments in the order the applications were received or deemed received by the Department. Applications received on the same day shall be deemed to have been received simultaneously.

(5) Should the total amount requested by rural funds certifiable by the Department exceed the maximum allowable certification, the Department shall certify applications in proportionate percentages based upon the ratio of the amount of capital investments requested in an application to the total amount of capital investments requested in all applications. The Department shall certify up to $100 million in capital investments pursuant to this Code section.

(6) The Department shall provide written notice of the certification to the rural fund within 30 days of receipt of a completed application. Such written notice shall be provided in electronic and paper formats.

(7) Applications shall be denied if:

(a) The applicant fails to satisfy all statutory requirements;

(b) The applicant fails to demonstrate that the applicant's business plan will result in a positive economic impact on the state of Georgia over a ten-year period that exceeds the cumulative amount of tax credits that would be issued to the applicant if the application were approved; or

(c) The Department has already approved the maximum amount of capital investment authority of $100 million.

(8) Within 15 days of receipt of an application that will be denied, the Department shall inform the applicant of the grounds for denial. This notification shall be delivered in electronic format.

(9) Applicants of denied applications shall have 15 days following the notice of denial to provide additional information requested by the Department or otherwise complete the application. Applicants successfully providing required information within the 15-day period shall be deemed complete as of the original date of submission. Applicants failing to provide the information or failing to complete the application within the 15-day period will remain denied and must be resubmitted in full with a new submission date.

Notes

Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 110-35-1-.05

O.C.G.A. § 33-1-25.

Original Rule entitled "Certification of the Rural Fund" adopted. F. Feb. 16, 2018; eff. Mar. 9, 2018, as specified by Agency.